Virginia's Mark Herring Says He Was Wrong To Oppose Gay Marriage

By
Carlos Santoscoy
Published:
January 23, 2014

In announcing that Virginia will no
longer defend its gay marriage ban in federal lawsuits, Attorney
General Mark Herring said he was wrong to oppose marriage equality in
2006.

In what amounts to a seismic shift in
the state's legal position, Herring, a Democrat, told reporters on
Thursday that the U.S. Constitution trumps Virginia's Constitution.

“A state law and a state constitution
cannot violate the United States Constitution,” Herring said. “And
I swore a duty to uphold both and the Supreme Court is clear. The
United States Constitution is the law of the land, the supreme law of
the land.”

Victoria Cobb, president of the
Christian conservative Family Foundation of Virginia, criticized
Herring's decision, describing it as “frightening.”

“The decision by the attorney general
is not surprising, but it is disappointing and frightening,” Cobb
said in a statement. “It's disappointing that he wouldn't be clear
about his intentions on this issue while campaigning for the office.
More importantly, it's frightening that politicians like the attorney
general feel that they can pick and choose which aspects of the
Constitution they deem worthy to defend and apply.”

The reversal marks a dramatic shift for
the state whose top elected leaders had previously strongly supported
the ban. But Republicans were swept out of those offices in
November.

Herring said his office would file a
brief in support of plaintiffs challenging the constitutionality of
the state's 2006 voter-approved constitutional amendment limiting
marriage to heterosexual couples. The case, Bostic V. Rainey,
will have its first hearing next week.

As a member of the state Senate in
2006, Herring voted against marriage equality.

“As a legislator in 2006, I voted
against the right of same-sex couples to marry,” Herring told
reporters. “Even at that time, I spoke about the need to fight
other forms of discrimination against Virginians based on their
sexual orientation. But I was wrong to stop short of marriage
equality.”

“You know, I have just come to the
conclusion that I wouldn't want the state telling my son or my
daughter who they can and cannot marry,” he added with a nod of his
head.

Previous state attorney generals who
have refused to defend such bans include Kamala Harris of California,
Lisa Madigan of Illinois and Kathleen Kane of Pennsylvania. North
Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper has said that he personally
supports marriage equality but will defend the state's ban in court.